US Reports Highest Number of Measles Cases in 35 Years
Declining vaccination rates and misinformation have fueled a resurgence that now threatens the nation’s measles elimination status, officials said.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed 5,182 measles cases in 2026 on Friday, the highest case load the country has experienced in 35 years.
- Rising skepticism toward health authorities and declining immunization rates have fueled the resurgence, with critics accusing Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. of fanning distrust through vaccine misinformation.
- Forty-Five states have reported infections, with health agencies confirming at least eight measles-related deaths among very young children who face severe complications including pneumonia and brain inflammation.
- If a singular viral strain circulates for 12 months, the U.S. will lose its 'eliminated' status declared in 2000, a designation currently up for reassessment this month.
- Under Kennedy's leadership, the nonprofit Children's Health Defense spread misinformation during a 2019 measles outbreak in Samoa, where vaccination rates plummeted to 31 percent and the country reported 83 measles-related deaths.
57 Articles
57 Articles
According to the health authority CDC, the USA is experiencing the largest measles outbreak since 1991. During the year 5,182 cases have already been registered. In Wisconsin a baby died for the first time in more than three and a half decades.
This year, the United States has recorded more than 5,000 cases of measles, an unmet level in the last 35 years for this serious and highly contagious disease, which returns strongly to a growing lack of confidence in vaccines, reports AFP.
U.S. measles cases top 5,000 for first time since 1991 | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
U.S. measles cases have surged to 5,182 so far this year, the highest annual total recorded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 35 years, as the disease continues to spread across the country.
By early November, a total of 5,182 confirmed measles cases had been reported in the United States this year.
Almost all infected persons were unvaccinated.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 39% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
